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EMPATHY IN PRODUCT DESIGN

Blog

Wed Mar 15, 2017 · Jeanie Barker

What You Do (or Don’t) Know About Your Users Matters More Than You May Think

I recently had lunch at a local fast-casual restaurant and noticed the establishment had changed its drink dispensing machine. In the past, they’d used the Coca-Cola Freestyle drink machine, with its modern, sleek design, touchscreen interface, and hundred-plus flavor combinations. Today however, the restaurant was back to a traditional drink dispenser, with standard offerings out of separate spouts. What would compel a business to revert to, what some may call, old technology? Especially with all of the accolades Coca-Cola seems to get from its custom dispenser.

Truth be told, I wasn’t entirely surprised by the restaurant’s decision. Although the Freestyle offers a fun, engaging user experience and custom drink options, consumers spend significantly more time standing in line to get a drink, resulting in congestion at the machine. This can be especially problematic during the always-busy lunch hour and at other peak times.

As a UX researcher and designer, I can’t help but notice how people respond to using a product. The purpose of this article isn’t to outline all of the good and bad design elements of this single product, but, rather, to note that when product features don’t align with the needs of users – and environmental factors aren’t given appropriate consideration – products fail. Such failures can be avoided through qualitative research methods, such as observations and contextual inquiry.

Empathy in Design

A key factor in designing a successful product is having empathy for your users – understanding what they do, think, feel, and say. This helps you identify what they truly need and the context in which your product might meet this need.

Gaining understanding and empathy for users to fuel design decisions is not a new concept; in fact, it is a primary tenet of human-centered design. “Empathize” is the first step in Design Thinking, a process that has been embraced by the business world as a key to driving innovation and differentiating one product from another. Both Forbes and Harvard Business Review have recently written about empathy and design thinking.

Contextual Inquiry

Contextual inquiry is a highly effective means for understanding your users, their needs, and the context in which they may use your product. Contextual inquiry helps you grasp an end user’s needs within their own unique environment – to uncover what the user actually does (not just what they say they do) and discover unmet needs. It creates opportunities for you to improve your products and/or innovate. Contextual inquiry should be done in the early stages of product design, so that research findings guide design solutions, and users are considered throughout the process.

As a part of contextual inquiry, researchers schedule time with a single user and observe him/her performing specific tasks. Researchers begin by interviewing the user to gain an overall understanding, and then establish a master-apprentice relationship, whereby the researcher observes, takes notes, and occasionally interrupts to ask questions about the user’s needs and/or processes. After the user has completed his/her tasks, another interview session can take place to review a high-level summary of the findings – allowing the user an opportunity to validate or correct what was uncovered.

Consider these 10 tips to conducting successful contextual inquiries:

Don’t judge – Observe and engage users without the influence of value judgments upon their actions, circumstances, decisions, or “issues.”

Actively listen – Lose your interview guide, so that you absorb what users say to you, and how they say it, without thinking about the next thing you’re going to ask.

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Notice emotional responses – Observe a user’s facial expressions and body language while he/she is working. Look for things that cause frustration or delight. Ask users about how they are feeling during different phases of their work.

Be truly curious – Strive to assume a posture of wonder and curiosity, especially in circumstances that seem either familiar or uncomfortable.

Question everything – Question the things you think you already understand. Ask questions to learn about how the user perceives the world. Think about how a 4-year-old asks “Why?” about everything. Follow up an answer to one “why” with a second “why” for a deeper understanding and more clarity around the bigger picture.

Find patterns – Look for interesting threads and themes that emerge across interactions with users.

Take pictures or videos – Take note of the user’s surroundings: the layout of the space, and the people, systems, and things he/she interacts with to understand the true complexity of the user’s work. There is a lot to absorb and remember, and because time is limited, you may not be able to write everything down. Pictures and videos provide wonderful ways to capture this vital data.

Observe the environment – Notice environmental factors that might influence a user’s experience. Lighting, temperature, and noise are just a few of the factors that may need to be considered when designing your product. Consider frequency of use for a product throughout the day and what might influence this change. Are there times when your product will be used more? How might this impact design?

Focus on workflow – A product is rarely, if ever, used in isolation. Understanding the larger context in which your product is used is essential to understanding your user’s overall goals and influences. Take note of the purpose and role other systems and products play in the user’s tasks. Notice when the user interacts with other people, what role they play, and any patterns of when and why the interaction takes place.

Include a variety of users – It’s important to consider all “average” (and some extreme) users in your research. Take the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine. Who is its average user? Teenagers? Older adults? Parents filling drinks for multiple kids? When planning your contextual inquiries, recruit a variety of users with different levels of experience; from different work environments; and who may have different relationships with your product. For B2B companies, it is also important to consider the needs of both the business buying the product and the end user or consumer using the product. Your goal should be to empathize and consider the perspectives of all users.

By using research methods like contextual inquiry to gain empathy for your users, you become their advocate and ensure their needs are at the center of your design process from start to finish. This supports the creation of successful products that are embraced by users and drive your business’ success.

Jeanie Barker is a Principal UX Designer at PointClear Solutions. With more than 16 years of usability and interface design experience, 14 of which have been spent in the healthcare and public health domains, she specializes in design thinking and user research methodologies. Jeanie holds a master’s degree in human-computer interaction from Georgia Tech, and a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Rochester Institute of Technology. She is a member of the adjunct faculty of University of Alabama at Birmingham’s School of Health Professions, teaching master’s level students about user experience in healthcare information technology.

To connect with one of PointClear Solutions’ UI / UX experts or to learn more about our digital strategy, design, development, and/or management services, Contact Us. (And don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn for more great content!)

DAVID KARABINOS

CEO, PRESIDENT & BOARD CHAIRMAN

As President and CEO of PointClear Solutions, David works with the board and executive team driving the vision and strategies of the company. His 36+ years of technology and business experience have helped PointClear achieve exceptional and steady growth since he joined the company in 2010. David honed his skills during the first 18 years of his career in Fortune 500 companies. Since then he has used those skills to create and build numerous companies including eHealthClaim, EquaTerra, Halo Monitoring, American Bank of Huntsville, Harvest Business Advisors and PointClear Solutions. David earned a BS in Business Management/Finance from the University of Alabama Birmingham.

BLAINE ANDERSON

BOARD DIRECTOR, FOUNDER

Blaine co-founded PointClear in 2006 and has been heavily involved in all aspects of the company as it has grown from a startup to a market leader. Blaine started his career at NASA and spent 17 years there studying vibration and acoustic effects in the Space Station and the Space Shuttle programs. Prior to PointClear, Blaine was involved at startups in the healthcare and software development areas, including eHealthClaim and ComFrame. Blaine earned an engineering degree from Auburn University, and currently serves as a mentor at numerous incubators in the Nashville area.

Daren McCormick

COO, EVP & BOARD DIRECTOR

As Chief Operating Officer, Daren works closely with the company’s leadership to guide and direct the day-to-day operations of the company. For over 25 years, Daren has served in progressively more responsible leadership positions across a wide range of privately held and publicly traded companies, including “Fortune” companies. Daren has dedicated his career to the delivery of creative solutions in the healthcare information technology marketplace. Daren holds a degree in Computer Science with a concentration in Software Engineering.

NEAL EVANS, PhD

BOARD DIRECTOR, FOUNDER

Neal Evans, PhD., is both a founder and board member at PointClear Solutions. His interests include artificial intelligence, computational physics, and evolutionary algorithms. His contributions range from the theoretical to the practical, including advances in machine learning, physics, and theoretical optics, and application of these concepts to health informatics. He is a member of the American Physical Society (APS), the Optical Society of America (OSA), and the International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE). He has published in scientific journals and books. Neal is a former board member of the A.G. Gaston Boys & Girls Club and volunteers for Carpenter’s Hands in Birmingham, Alabama.

LEE FARABAUGH

BOARD DIRECTOR, FOUNDER

Lee Farabaugh is both a member of the Board of Directors and founder of PointClear Solutions. She is a senior technology design, operations, and innovation expert, with more than a decade of experience in financial technology (fintech) and healthcare IT. Currently, Lee is serving as chief operating officer of Core10, a company that she also co-founded. Lee holds a bachelor’s degree in studio art from Wake Forest University, a master’s degree in human-computer interaction from Georgia Tech, and a master’s degree in health informatics from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she is an adjunct instructor. Before joining PointClear in 2006, she was a usability engineer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

SHAWN EWING

VICE PRESIDENT OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT

As Vice President of Project Management, Shawn oversees a team of project managers to ensure the successful delivery of client’s software development engagements. Shawn is a motivated, personable business professional with over 12 years of product and project management experience. Since joining PointClear Solutions in 2011, he has applied his project management skills to numerous projects spanning several months to multi-year engagements. He is accomplished in project management methodologies, web and mobile development projects, project planning, team building and communication. Shawn earned a BS in Education from Missouri State University and is a Certified Scrum Master (CSM).

THADD SELDEN

PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT

As a Principal Architect, Thadd helps PointClear Solutions design innovative and scalable web applications and mobile app back-ends. Thadd has a degree in Physics and Math and started his career in defense. After spending 7 years building ground control systems for unmanned systems, first for the Navy and later for Raytheon, Thadd moved on to work on web technologies. He has been using Ruby on Rails since its infancy and has helped launch dozens of successful web and mobile projects.

TOMMY WHITE

VICE PRESIDENT, SOLUTIONS MANAGEMENT

For more than 20 years, technology has been at the center of Tommy White’s career. Across multiple industries, including industrial automation, process control, banking, retail, and healthcare, he has used this central theme to make great ideas a reality. Among the leading international organizations with which Tommy has worked are Siemens, BBVA, and InfluenceHealth. Leaning on degrees in both computer science and psychology, he fully understands that solutions are not independent topics, but rather a choreographed dance between business, technologies, and end users.

Tommy has been a part of the PointClear Solutions team since early 2016 and serves as Vice President, Solutions Management. He is based out of the Birmingham, Alabama, office and his team is responsible for establishing the strategic services that PointClear clients and partners take advantage of for long-term planning, roadmap definition, and execution. PointClear’s proven Solutions process is both a core driver for success, and an accelerator for any multi-phase, multi-platform solutions.

SHAWN FARRAR

SOLUTIONS DIRECTOR

Solutions Director Shawn Farrar joined PointClear Solutions in 2011 and offers expertise in enterprise and business strategy, project management, product management, business analysis, and vendor management. Previously, he served as a global project manager at Apple and a manager, cloud systems, at Hertz Global Holdings. Shawn holds a Bachelor of Science degree in human factors from the University of Illinois and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in health informatics from Northwestern University.

MICHAEL ATKINS

VICE PRESIDENT, TECHNICAL SERVICES

Michael Atkins joined PointClear Solutions in 2017 and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s technical services functions, including management of a team of architects and engineers.

Before joining PointClear, Michael spent several years with Change Healthcare, where he served as the company’s director of Applications Development, Engagement Solutions. Prior to this, he was a director of Healthcare Clinical Solutions Development with Walgreens.

Michael holds a BPA in computer science and accounting from Mississippi State University.

CHRIS HAMMACK

VICE PRESIDENT, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Chris Hammack brings to the PointClear Solutions team more than 20 years of healthcare industry experience. A seasoned sales and business development leader, he most recently served Greenway Health as a regional vice president. He offers expertise in population health and revenue cycle operations, among other areas of healthcare.

Chris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is also a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE) and holds various other networking, management, and sales certifications, including one from the Sandler sales training program.

CHRIS KARABINOS

VICE PRESIDENT, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Chris Karabinos has been with PointClear Solutions since 2011, serving in various business development positions, including sales, marketing and partnership development. As vice president of Business Development, he has helped develop PointClear’s business in the healthcare technology market nationally, as well as in the Southeast United States.

Previously, Chris served eHealthClaim, Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, and ChoicePoint. He is very active in the HIT community in Georgia, serving on the boards of TAG-Health, Health 2.0 Atlanta and Kennesaw State University’s Healthcare Management & Informatics School. Chris has also served on the HIT Leadership Summit’s Steering Committee since 2012. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering from Auburn University. He resides in Atlanta, Georgia.